HIIT: A super effective cardio workout to help you lose fat

If you’ve been following the same workout plan for months and you’re not seeing any results, it’s time to do something to change that. Enough is enough: you’ll no longer have to ride a bike or walk on a treadmill for long periods just because you think that, the more the exercise lasts, the more calories you’ll burn. The first step is changing your workout methodology.

Do you know what HIIT is?

HITT (High-Intensity Intermittent Training) is a type of short term cardio workout that aims to provoke, during a certain period of time, stimuli of strong and very strong intensity with a fast recovery.

What are the benefits of HIIT?

-It can be used by anyone, regardless of their level of physical condition, because the idea is to improve your performance gradually. It is normal if, at the beginning of the workouts, you don’t exercise for a long time; only by practicing will you be able to increase resistance and your workout level.-You can do it anywhere. If your problem is that you are not in a gym or you don’t have the right machines to exercise at home, you can choose to do a HIIT outdoor run workout; you only need a watch to measure the time.-It is a workout that doesn’t take too much of your time, only 15-20 minutes and it’s done.-It’s the ideal method for those who need to burn fat in the short term.

To burn more calories in less time and be able to be in excellent shape for this summer, we challenge you to follow this HIIT program in 8 weeks.

The following plan can be combined with any other activity: rope jumping, swimming, running, riding a bike or even using the elliptical. The recommended amount of time for each stage is just a suggestion. If you need more than two weeks for the first stage, it’s not a problem; as soon as it gets easier, move on to the next stage.

1ª STAGE (1:4) – Weeks 1-2

After warming up, run for about 15 seconds at your maximum speed, and after that, do 60 more seconds of walking or slow running. Repeat 10 times and end up with 15 explosive seconds of high intensity exercise, every day. Follow this plan every day, during weeks 1 and 2.

Total: 14 minutes

2ª STAGE (1:2) – Weeks 3-4

After warming up, run for about 30 seconds at your maximum speed, and after that do 60 more seconds of walking or slow running. Repeat 10 times and end up with 30 explosive seconds of high intensity exercise, every day. Follow this plan every day, during weeks 3 and 4.

Total: 17 minutes

3ª STAGE (1:1) – Weeks 5-6

After warming up, run for about 30 seconds at your maximum speed, and after that, do 30 more seconds of walking or slow running. Repeat 11 times and end up with 30 explosive seconds of high intensity exercise, every day. Follow this plan every day, during weeks 5 and 6.

Total: 18,5 minutes

4ª STAGE (2:1) – Weeks 7-8

After warming up, run for about 30 seconds at your maximum speed, and after that, do 15 more seconds of walking or slow running. Repeat 25 times and end up with 30 explosive seconds of high intensity exercise, every day. Follow this plan every day, during weeks 7 and 8.

Total: 20 minutes

Curiosity

Combining HIIT and Beta-alanine increase your muscle mass.

A study published in 2009 by the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition reveals that, the males who followed a 6 week program of HIIT (15 minutes a day, 2:1 exercise/rest, 3 days a week) while they were on a beta-alanine supplement, have increased their muscle mass in more than 1kg without lifting weights.

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References:

N/d, HITT – A melhor forma de queimar gordura?, n/d, translation and adaptation of the original versionJim Stoppani, Ph.D., The Ultimate 8-Week HIIT-For-Fat-Burning Program, May 2012, translation and adaptation of the original version